On The Fly

An incredible convergence of technology and human ingenuity was achieved as Commander Neil Armstrong and Colonel Buzz Aldrin stepped cautiously down the ladder of the lunar module Eagle and onto the moon’s surface. “That’s one small step for man, one giant leap for mankind,” came Armstrong’s crackled transmission from the moon's surface. That sentence would resonate with millions on Earth for years to come. It was July 21, 1969, when I was 13 years old, watching a fuzzy black and white television transmission with fascination and anticipation; the space program held me captive. As an avid science fiction reader, I know this was not fiction - but mankind’s greatest achievement. That memory was rekindled over four decades later while clattering along the rails in a passenger train from Kansas City to Galesburg, Illinois, recently, while listening to Buzz Aldrin’s audiobook version, Magnificent Desolation, retelling the story in detail. I was transported back in time...